BRPTO´S 2018 ACTION PLAN SETS THE PATH FOR BRAZIL TO ADHERE TO THE MADRID PROTOCOL

Postado em 5 de February de 2018

On January 26, the Brazilian PTO (Instituto Nacional da Propriedade Industrial – INPI) published its 2018 Action Plan, which sets out the guidelines, goals and initiatives that will guide the organisation’s activities throughout the year, in line with the strategic guidelines of the Ministry of Industry, Foreign Trade and Services. Three priority deliveries, ten targets and thirty initiatives were defined, organized in four axes: operational efficiency, personnel, cooperation and infrastructure and management.

Amongst the institutional guidelines that will guide the work of the Institute, priority is given to improving the services – reducing the backlog of patents, trademarks and industrial designs at first instance, preparation for the Madrid Protocol and improvement, harmonization and agility in the process of examining of geographical indications applications.

Recognizing that the main operational problem of INPI is the backlog, its reduction was placed as “Priority delivery #1” and, directly dependant on that, “Priority delivery #2”, is the preparation for the Madrid Protocol, which requires a shorter deadline for the first technical examination of trademark applications – down to 18 months from the current 25 months (if there is no opposition from third parties), besides providing INPI with the necessary conditions to operate in the Madrid Protocol.

Preparing INPI to operate under the international trademark registration system governed by the Madrid Protocol is a strategic initiative. Its feasibility involves multiple external constraints, the overcoming of which exceeds the competence for decision and the capacity for individual action of INPI. Considering the priority and complexity of this institutional delivery for 2018, INPI structured a strategic project defining and detailing the necessary and sufficient conditions to ensure the operational viability of Brazil’s adhesion to the Madrid Protocol.

It is worth noting the external constraints identified by BRPTO that require decisions and actions articulated with other players of the federal administration and the National Congress:

– Authorization from National Congress to adhering to the Madrid Protocol with the amendments proposed by the BRPTO;

– Updating the BRPTO´s service fees;

– Alteration to the BRPTO´s governance structure; and

– Recruiting new Industrial Property Technologists, considering the necessary balance of examiners in the first and second administrative levels.

On 21 June 2018, the Brazilian Official Gazette (Diário Oficial da União – DOU) published the Presidency´s message 201 to the National Congress, which refers to the text of the Madrid Protocol on the International Registration of Marks. On 24 October 2017, the BRPTO submitted the project for the adequacy of the its structure, a fundamental step for Brazil’s possible adherence to the Madrid Protocol.

Despite the many inquiries on the subject, the Madrid Protocol promises to bring many benefits to Brazil’s trademark registration system. It allows the international registration of brands in several countries with significant cost reduction, speed and ease in managing brand portfolios. According to the World Intellectual Property Organization – WIPO representative, Mr. Graça Aranha, there are 1.3 million trademarks registered in the system, which covers 116 countries through 100 members, representing 80% of world trade.

In order to manage the new agenda, the BRPTO will put together a strategic management structure composed of governance body, organizational units and teams dedicated to supporting execution and monitoring, evaluating and pressing for results.